A void marriage is a marriage that was never valid from the start and cannot be made valid. Common reasons for a court to find a marriage void ab initio are that the marriage is incestuous or polygamous.
A void marriage is one of two types of marriages that can be annulled or considered as if it never happened in the eyes of the law. The other type is a voidable marriage, which differs from a void marriage because it is considered valid until declared invalid. This can happen in cases where consent to the marriage was determined to be impossible due to mental incapacity.
Divorce and annulment differ in that divorce acknowledges the existence of the marriage and legally terminates it, while annulment voids the marriage as if it never happened.
[Last updated in July of 2024 by the Wex Definitions Team]
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